Arjun Arora
Experience: A leader in AI technology, career coaching, and education with over a decade of experience educating 5,000+ experts on AI ethics and implementations. Spearheaded 100+ enterprise AI projects across Fortune 500 and founded Advisor.AI to level the playing field via comprehensive, individualized advising support services.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
First ask yourself who you want to be, then go do that!
Michael Griffin
Experience: Michael brings 25+ years of experience in higher education administration, spanning admissions, enrollment, retention, financial aid and advising. With a background in private universities and public systems, he now focuses on helping high school students navigate career and postsecondary education pathways.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Visionaries see no barriers, only what could be. They ask what if and why not. Answered by let’s try. They see the invisible. What do you see?
Thomas Dickson, Ph.D.
Experience: 20+ years in higher education leadership. A former assistant vice provost at UC Riverside focused on experiential learning and first-generation students. Doctorate in higher education administration with a dissertation on academic advisor job functions.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Try things out. The best knowledge comes from testing out professions through internships, undergraduate research, service-learning, special projects, community service, clubs and organizations, work, and other opportunities that allow you to explore career pathways.
Alan Beaudrie
Experience: Nationally recognized, award-winning academic advisor with 25+ years in higher education. Founder of Beaudrie College Success Coaching, LLC. Former advisor at ASU and University of Arizona.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
The purpose of college is not to prepare you for what you will do the rest of your life. It is to prepare you for your first steps after graduation. You just need to make sure you are going in the right direction.
Radhika Seshan, Ph.D.
Experience: 25+ years leading academic and professional programs and technology partnerships. Former dean at Northeastern University and SDSU, known for elevating student success and program reach. Ph.D. in International Economics, University of Houston; B.A., University of Chennai.
Jeff Doyle, Ph.D.
Experience: 30+ years of experience at 10 private and public universities across Texas, Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland, and Florida. Managed over 70 full-time staff and a $50M budget
for multiple departments at Baylor. Currently, Jeff works in student life at Southwestern University in
Georgetown and enjoys writing about methods to transform student success.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Give yourself grace and see your mistakes as opportunities to grow. Stay humble, be grateful, and never give up hope.
Priyanka Subramanian
Experience: 12+ years as a product manager and former entrepreneur with expertise in building learner-centered products. Co-founded Allrounder Cup, a quiz-based social games company reaching 30,000+ students. Led high-impact projects with top brands, including Pearson, Leap Finance and Teach for India.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Embrace the uncomfortable.
Shubham Shinde
Experience: 4+ years in AI research and academic advising. MS in Computer Science from Santa Clara; former Amazon employee and AI hackathon winner. Improved advising AI model accuracy and speed by 75%.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
To achieve independence and success, you must work harder and smarter than the rest, especially when others quit. Success isn't reserved for a select few; it belongs to those who persist when others let go.
Aditya Gupta
Experience: Aditya, a Computer Science graduate from the University of Arizona, has 3+ years as a Teaching Assistant and Peer Advisor, supporting 450+ students. A former data analyst, he specializes in leveraging technology to optimize solutions, enhance user experiences, and drive impactful, data-driven results.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Reach out, don’t hesitate—it's the first step to growth.
Gary Marx
Experience: Gary is a rocket scientist turned entrepreneur. He's founded multiple companies, grown with two of Y-Combinator's top companies (Optimizely & Gusto). He led the growth of a Shopify store to over $30 million and has been building & leading teams for the past decade.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Relationships will take you far - nurture them. Find great people to work alongside
Devin Chaloux
Experience: 10+ years across customer success, edtech, and higher education. Former Founding CSM at Esme Learning. Recognized for impactful, student-first advising at SNHU. Focused on building systems that help make programs more student-centered. Part-time music theory scholar and lifelong learner.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
College strengthens the adaptable skills you’ll need to grow and succeed in a future shaped by change.
Anna Stoefen
Experience: With 10+ years in content development & digital publishing for SaaS startups, and a deep background in editorial operations, online course creation, and legal work, Anna brings a wide range of industry experience to craft easy onboarding and delightful learning experiences.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Stay flexible, curious, and keep learning.
S.K. Lee, Ed.M., CPCC
Experience: S.K. Lee is a seasoned founder, certified executive coach, and strategic investor with a track record of scaling startups and empowering leadership teams. As an angel investor, Venture Scout, and LP, she backs bold founders in EdTech, future-of-work, health, sustainability, and vertical SaaS. A Harvard and women’s college alumna, she’s most at home among startups—or with her rescue pups in the Redwoods.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Invest in relationships. Relationships with your peers, supervisors and staff, professors and staff on campus– no matter who it is, this network will be invaluable to you as your career unfolds.
Brian Backus
Experience: 20+ years in family media; co-founder of Hello Wonder, leveraging AI for family-friendly internet experiences. Former Disney and DreamWorks producer, Amazon product manager. Harvard MBA, USC MFA.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
You have to go out on a limb to get the best fruit.
Stephen Blaker
Experience: Cofounder of Blaker & Granet with 10+ years helping students and professionals navigate U.S. immigration for career success. Client industries include tech, healthcare, real estate and apparel.
BEST CAREER ADVICE
Where there is a will, there is a way.
Founder Story
Arjun Arora's professional journey is a testament to how intentional skill development, timely guidance & determination can unlock transformative career opportunities.
His path was shaped by overcoming numerous challenges associated with being an immigrant, first-generation college student, and LGBTQ+ individual. For years, he faced societal barriers and cultural challenges that hindered his career aspirations. However, he remained steadfast in his determination to drive impact and transformation.
After investing over 10,000 hours in personal career development, backward design planning, and seeking guidance from career coaches and advisors nationwide, Arjun emerged as a nationally recognized leader in implementing ethical AI technology. He has supported various Fortune 500 business transformation projects, educated more than 10,000 business and technical leaders on AI ethics and best practices, and spearheaded over 100 enterprise AI initiatives that drove more than $50 million in ROI.
In 2024, Arjun, along with his experienced team, traveled 30,000 miles to visit over 250 colleges to identify meaningful ways to provide students nationwide with timely, personalized, and holistic support.
Arjun actively participates in philanthropic initiatives such as the Arjun Arora '15 Sports Business Institute Research Grant, which helps hundreds of university students grow personally and professionally each year. He has supported thousands of students and experienced professionals in topics relating to professional growth and has mentored numerous LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs and startups to find accelerated success.